Featured affiliated academy: Black Dog BJJ, Wigan

BJJ Wigan

Where is the gym located?
Wigan, UK

How many people train there?
Currently 12

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
Slowly but surely yes! We only opened in November in a new town with zero students!

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
Highest is purple, lowest is a fresh white belt.

When did Black Dog BJJ, Wigan open?
Mid November ’23.

Some facts about you:

Name: Alex Riley
Age: 34
Belt: Purple
Profession: Human Factors Engineer
Years in BJJ: 6
Other martial arts: I’ve dabbled for years in Japanese Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, and a little Catch Wrestling prior to BJJ
Currently living in: Standish, UK
Originally from: Atherton, UK

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
Myself and my friend (and coach at Black Dog) Oly were both members of another large affiliation gym in another town. I coached and Oly was a friend and student. I was moving to another town, I also have a daughter on the way so I wanted to train closer home. There were a number of issues with the old gym (Jiu Jitsu politics and other issues) that personally clashed with my beliefs (that I share with BJJ Globetrotters) and also were making me not enjoy my Jiu Jitsu (to the point I almost quit).

So myself and Oly decided to set up a small club so we could continue to train and teach in an open and inclusive community with zero politics and most importantly ENJOY JIU JITSU AGAIN!

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
We only have a small membership so far but already have a great mix of people! Ages range from 19-54. We have members who are young lads who look like they could be great competitors if they choose to go that route, and others just enjoy learning, rolling, and meeting new people through jiu jitsu! We’re proud that almost all of our students are completely new to Jiu Jitsu, with no previous experience. They’re learning quickly and we’ve had the chance to bring them into the world of BJJ Globetrotters straight away! A few have already enquired about coming on camps with myself and Oly this year.

Why do they train in Black Dog BJJ, Wigan?
Some have jobs that require physical contact so they initially came to us with self defence in mind, but now have fallen in love with the enjoyment of the sport! Others have come to us wanting to know the “secrets’ or “invisible jiu jitsu” but again once they start training and rolling they learn to enjoy the process rather than just the destination!

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
There are definitely a lot of challenges! As a new gym, it’s really just getting the word out there! We don’t have the finances of bigger affiliate gyms to advertise to everyone. Plus myself and Oly both have day jobs so managing that and trying to run a gym can be exhausting but fun.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
There are some very good gyms in the surrounding areas, plus we have a very strong Catch Wrestling pedigree in Wigan so in my opinion the future is bright. Plus with the success of our local UFC champion Tom Aspinall, Jiu Jitsu is in the spotlight. I’m hoping more people are inspired by him and come and give Jiu Jitsu a try, whether that be at Black Dog or anywhere else. It would just be great if more people got into Jiu Jitsu!

What’s the best thing about Black Dog BJJ, Wigan?
We have a lot of fun, don’t take ourselves too seriously (as anyone who’s met us at camps know!), and we’re approachable and have a friendly atmosphere, so anyone can walk in and train.

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
Some people in the BJJ Globetrotters Facebook group may have seen my sarcastic recommendations before! But there are some great areas of natural beauty to go on hikes all around Wigan. The club itself is nestled in the Haigh Estate (a woodland estate near Haigh Hall, originally dating back before the 12th century).

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Black Dog BJJ, Wigan you can contact them here.

Featured Traveller: J.P. Maechler – BJJ Globetrotters

J.P. Maechler - BJJ Globetrotters

J.P. Maechler – BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 37

Belt: Purple for a long time :-)

Profession: Mechanical Engineer

How many years in BJJ: Around ten

Other martial arts: I did five years of Muay Thai before starting BJJ and two years of Judo when I was young. (Shouldn’t have stopped Judo… would help me now for BJJ)

Where do you live: Zürich, Switzerland

Where are you from: Zürich

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I look grumpy but if you get to know me I’m a nice person ;-) I also blog about my travels at www.bjjtravelblog.com

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
I love to travel. In my early twenties I started to explore Europe, and soon I made it to the US. For me it was clear that I needed to see more of the world. So I told myself that I would take every opportunity to travel for as long as possible. Shortly after I started BJJ I went to a bachelor party in Vegas, and right afterwards I went to LA and Miami. A teammate told me I should train while I’m in the US, because especially those places are hosting some of the best in the world. For me it was the first time in another gym, since the club I trained in at that time didn’t allow us to train in other gyms. From that time on it was clear that I would include training to my travels.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
I just came back from a 6.5-week trip through Southeast Asia. I visited Cambodia, Vietnam, and Thailand, and in total I managed to train in 12 academies during that time.

The next thing planned is a trip to Florida and the Bahamas.

J.P. Maechler – BJJ Globetrotters

What are the things you enjoy about travelling?
It’s easier to get in touch with local people while training. I love to learn about new cultures, the history of the countries, and of course I always try local food.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
At the end of 2022 I went to Central and South America. I planned my trip as far as Mexico, where I met a friend I made once at a BJJ camp, and during my time there (in Guadalajara) I planned how to continue.

I had the phone number of a black belt in Medellin from Christian, so I messaged him and told him I’ll be there in around 2 weeks. He said that I was welcome to train when I’m there, and asked me where I will go before coming to Medellin. I told him Panama, and a second later I had the number of a black belt in Panama City. I then contacted that guy and went to PC for training.

While I was there he also asked me about my plans and I said maybe Bocas del Toro. “Amazing, a student of mine has a gym there and another one has a guest house!” He gave me the number and I was ready for Bocas. In Bocas the trainer gave me a number of a guy in Quito, and in Medellin I got another number for Riobamba. More or less my entire trip took form thanks to the BJJ community. Every place I went, I had someone I knew who showed me the local stuff.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
In Manaus I trained at the gym of my friend’s sister. Even though we couldn’t really communicate they were super friendly, and after training they asked me to go for an açaí. We drove somewhere where I wouldn’t go on my own. We stopped in front of a garage and I saw a sign I recognized from somewhere. We entered and it was her father. For me it was the first time in my life seeing a Coral Belt. We took some pictures and he invited me for wrestling training the day after. Then we all went for an açaí and the sister also invited me to a party the gym was throwing the next day.

J.P. Maechler – BJJ Globetrotters

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
I try to do something in between. I like to save money and find affordable accommodation, but I can’t stay for too long in a shared dorm. Also I try to avoid long bus rides – for journeys like that I normally end up in an airplane.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Always check if you need a visa with your passport, or if there are any other restrictions for entering a country. More than once I had trouble entering. Look in advance for places to train and ask the community for information. Be open-minded and good things will happen.

Thank you to J.P. Maechler – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Featured affiliated academy: Abstract Jiu Jitsu, Houston

Abstract Jiu Jitsu, Houston

Where is the gym located?
Abstract is located in Kingwood, about 25 minutes north of Houston TX.

How many people train there?
So we have two parts to the business model. One part is of course Jiu-Jitsu which entails 4-6 year-old classes, 7 and up classes, women only, and adult gi/nogi classes. This would be close to 100 to 120 members. The other side is the acrobatics side where we work with a large amount of competitive dancers, cheerleaders, and gymnasts in the area. This program has between 90 and 120 students as well.

So 200 to 240 or so students total.

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
We have grown a lot the last few months. We recently moved into a space nearly five times as big as our last one. I would say we’ve had 5 to 10 new members added each month.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
White through black.

When did Abstract Jiu Jitsu, Houston open?
2019.

Some facts about you:

Name: Mat Brooks
Age: 34
Belt: Black
Profession: Acro coach and head Jiu-Jitsu instructor
Years in BJJ: 15
Other martial arts: Nope
Currently living in: Kingwood, TX, USA
Originally from: Sugarland, TX

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
I trained under a local instructor until I was a purple or brown belt. It eventually came to light he was doing plenty of questionable things, so I couldn’t stay. I helped a friend when he opened his own space, but that quickly turned sour due to poor work effort and all the bad stuff Jiu-Jitsu culture can do to someone. I quit at brown for nearly a year. During that time me and my two friends Garrick Chan and Pedro Hermosa stayed in contact and often talked about Jiu-Jitsu. We talked about possibly opening our own classes mostly to train ourselves, since all the Jiu-Jitsu in the area was pretty bad. I linked up with a local karate studio and they let us work out of there from 9:30pm to 11pm two nights a week. That turned into some morning classes as well. Just us training turned into about 10 students before… a flood came and destroyed all of our mats.

We decided then that if we were going to do this we should find a space for lease. We made an LLC and found a spot. Signed a lease and I used the money from my father’s passing to furnish it. That was about one month before Covid. Lockdown shut us down for a month and then we started back up. After a year we expanded into double the space (2k) and worked the next two years building our acro program and kids/adults Jiu-Jitsu programs.

Fast forward to now. We have opened a 10k square foot space that is nearly everything we wanted it to be. I do this full time with two great friends/owners nearly every day. Life is good and moving in the right direction.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
We have a lot of interesting people in this space. From homeschool kids doing Jiu-Jitsu and dance working on becoming a better athlete. Moms and dads of these kids that have started training and become an integral part of this ecosystem. Young adults from several walks of life that train competitively or just to get a workout in. We have a solid group and I can’t say enough good things about them. We wouldn’t be here at all without the local support.

Why do they train in Abstract Jiu Jitsu, Houston?
Health, mental stability, because their kids train. Most just seem to like the community and time they get to spend together.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
Honestly we haven’t encountered too many aside from people just not liking the contact of the sport. The acrobatics side of this business has really helped give us time to grow. Like all good things there is a specific amount of time needed to grow.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
Things are bright in this area. We are lucky to be in a spot easily accessible from several communities. We have a long lease so we are not going anywhere soon. Our goal is to show these kids and adults another outlet to be and live like an athlete aside from the usual means.

What’s the best thing about Abstract Jiu Jitsu, Houston?
How open and welcoming it is. You would feel lovely just walking in and seeing how open and clean it is. The amount of free space really shines here and gives you room to relax.

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
Houston has some of the best Vietnamese, Indian, and BBQ around. There is a ton of food to explore not too far away. Aside from that, Houston doesn’t have a huge amount of nature to see or anything too great. I don’t say that in a bad way, but Houston is for the food experience for sure.

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Abstract Jiu Jitsu, Houston you can contact them here.

Featured Traveller: Tomás Barry – BJJ Globetrotters

Tomás Barry BJJ

Age: 29

Belt: Blue

Profession: Software Engineer

How many years in BJJ: I had my first class in September 2017

Other martial arts: I have had very short stints trying boxing and Muay Thai. I have vague memories of doing karate as a kid too. But with the time that I have, I chose to focus on BJJ. Originally it was a way to keep active and meet people when I moved countries.

Where do you live: London, England. I moved here in July 2017.

Where are you from: Dublin, Ireland

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I have a lot of metal in my body – 18 screws and a pair of rods through most of my spine. I had scoliosis etc. as a kid, so at 16 I had a pretty major operation (two actually) to get it corrected. A bonus was that I became three inches taller overnight! It doesn’t really affect me day-to-day or in BJJ. I know my limits and there are certain movements that are troublesome (my berimbolos are not a pretty sight) but I have found a way to train around it.

I also really enjoy running. It took quite a while for me to actively enjoy it but I have found it to be one of the best things for my BJJ cardio without taxing the body as much as just doing more rounds and now I have it as a core part of my weekly activity.

One day I would like to get into teaching BJJ. If I wasn’t a software engineer I probably would be a teacher. Right now, I’m just focused on collecting as much knowledge as I can from people in the BJJ community.

Tomás Barry – BJJ Globetrotters

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
I tend to travel quite a bit throughout the year. Whether that’s going back to Ireland or somewhere further afield, I wanted to find a way to keep training while I was gone. The first gym I ever went to was CVA JiuJitsu in Edinburgh, and Ben Fletcher who runs it was extremely welcoming. From that experience I realised that I could learn a broad range of styles of BJJ by dropping into gyms when I’m on the road. So far I’ve been to about 35 academies across 23 countries.

I’m not a competitor, but what I’ve found is that by training in a new gym your “game” is put to the test in a similar way (without the pressure of a competition). You will naturally build a game and instincts around, and for, people at your own gym but when you train in a new gym this all goes out the window and you can really see how effective your BJJ is.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
I’ve travelled quite a bit in December and January. I spent some of December in Colombia. After the new year I came back to London as I then had to hop over to the west of Ireland where I was the best man at a wedding followed immediately by a trip out to the Caribbean camp. I’m looking forward to a more settled February (although I do have to travel back to Ireland one more time).

I have two other camps booked for 2024 already – Maine and Camp 100. On top of that I’ll be visiting a friend in Rome and I would really like to do some interrailing around a bit of Europe. You’ll see me posting on the Globetrotters Facebook page looking for suggestions on where to train.

Tomás Barry – BJJ Globetrotters

What are the things you enjoy about travelling?
It’s a bit cliche, but I love to meet new people and learn about the history of a place. It really opens your eyes to what the world has to offer. We also have such a strange community that is both incredibly niche but simultaneously spans the entire globe – you can always find somewhere to train.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
If it wasn’t for Globetrotters I don’t think I would ever have visited the Faroe Islands. That was such a surreal trip and I am very glad that I did it.

One of my favourite memories actually is from Estonia when I posted into the Globetrotters group to see if any other early arrivals wanted to meet me in the local Irish pub (I’m yet to find somewhere that does not have an Irish pub) to watch the All-Ireland Hurling final. I counted 6 different nationalities coming to watch a sport that they’d never seen before. It was really fun to share that experience with others.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
We’re not all that different from one another – we all want to live happy and fulfilling lives and although that may be an obvious statement, until you see the diversity that this world has to offer and the breadth of people that inhabit it you won’t truly appreciate how special it is to be able to connect with people from all corners of the globe.

When it comes to training, I have found it amazing that there is such a wide variety of people and styles. I can’t think of any other sport where you can do one round with a brand new white belt and the next with a top level professional competitor. It’s pretty wild.

Tomás Barry – BJJ Globetrotters

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
I’m not a budget traveller but I am conscious of my spending. Ideally everything would be cheap but some things are worth opening your budget on and balancing elsewhere – if I have to spend a bit more on accommodation but I’ll save time and money on daily commuting it can work out as a net positive. I’m also more willing to bite the bullet on a ticket/expense while travelling if it’s going to be a now or never type thing. Saying that, you need to find what works for you and what is important to you. Fancy restaurants aren’t my jam but I have had really good experiences with guided tours. If I’m going somewhere more remote where the apartment is essentially just the bed then I will go cheaper.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Be open. Even if you visit somewhere that you ultimately don’t like, you will have had an experience. Use the Globetrotter community! A few of the gyms that I have visited have come as a result of me asking in the Facebook group or people that I’ve met at camps. Word of mouth is still the best way to get a recommendation. Try not to spend your time sleeping in – you can do that at home.

Thank you to Tomás Barry – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Featured Camp Instructor: Aaron Esdon – BJJ Globetrotters

Aaron Esdon bjj

Aaron Esdon – BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 43
Belt: Black
Profession: Criminal Intelligence Analyst/Jiu Jitsu Instructor

Started training (year): 2014
City/country: London, Ontario, Canada

 

Main achievements in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu:

Prior to 2020, I would’ve said hitting the jiu-jitsu podium over 40 times at all belt levels, including a bronze medal at the Pan IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi Championships was my main achievement. 

Then the global pandemic hit and my perspective changed.  It was during that time that I had the opportunity to open my own jiu-jitsu academy in London, Ontario.

In a million years, I would never have fully appreciated the fulfillment in developing and growing an academy from virtually nothing.  

During the last three years, the amazing people I have met, and the experiences I have been fortunate enough to experience have truly opened my eyes to what achievement really means.

Aaron Esdon – BJJ Globetrotters

 

Which Globetrotters camps have you attended:

Arizona Camp 2021, 2022, 2023.  Maine USA Camp 2022, 2023.  Zen Camp Spring 2024.

 

Which camp has been your favorite so far?

Maine USA Camp 2023 was, without a doubt, my favorite.  Being able to instruct a class at such a special place for so many incredible people is a memory I will cherish forever.  On top of instructing, it was my first opportunity to bring two of my students and show them what makes Globetrotter’s camps so special.

 

Aaron Esdon- BJJ instructor

 

Favorite stories/moments from the camps?

Without a doubt, receiving my black belt from Professor Jay Pages and Professor Matt McPeake a the Arizona Camp in 2023 was a camp highlight for me.  I was floored and has no idea such an honour would be bestowed upon me in front of nearly 300 people.  Being able to share such a special moment with so many friendly and welcoming practitioners truly made it one of the most special moments in my entire jiu-jitsu journey.  

 

Your favorite class/classes to teach at camp? 

 

Aaron Esdon – BJJ Globetrotters USA Camp

Anything half guard is such an enjoyable teaching experience for me.   As a white belt I quickly became drawn to other half guard practitioners like Lucas Leite and love exploring all the details of both bottom and top half guard concepts and techniques.  The position is so fundamental in all aspects of training that I find it best for teaching in the large groups often seen at camp.   This is even true for my favorite half guard class to teach – Octopus Half Guard.

 

Anything else you want to add to your profile: I know it goes without saying, but Platinum BJJ in London Ontario is the most welcoming academy in the area.   If you’re ever in our neck of the woods, please drop by for a class or our famous open mat.   All are welcome!

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Aaron Esdon – BJJ Globetrotters instructor

A picture of me with Kao BJJ in ethiopia

My Experience at Kao BJJ in Ethiopia

Hi there, I’m Heythem from heythemnaji.com.

I spend my time blogging& traveling – visiting different BJJ Gyms around the world, especially in places where you wouldn’t expect to find BJJ.

I’ve been to BJJ Gyms in Uganda, Ethiopia, and Kenya, and I’m currently training in Baghdad, Iraq.

One experience I hold dear is my time at Kao BJJ in Addis Ababa.

At the beginning of 2023, I went to Ethiopia for three months. Of course, I didn’t want to stop training Jiu-Jitsu. So, I tried to find a way to train BJJ in Ethiopia. I looked online to see whether I could find a BJJ gym. I only found one in the whole country: Kao BJJ in Addis Ababa.

I didn’t know what to expect. It was my first time going to a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gym outside of Europe. So I took a cab and went there.

I’m so grateful I went – they have many dedicated and driven athletes and one of the nicest atmospheres I’ve ever witnessed.

A picture taken within Kao BJJ in Ethiopia. It's a group picture with me and the other BJJ practitioners
The Kao BJJ Gang!!

Training Schedule, Location & Pricing

They train 4x a week – Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. You can check out their schedule on their Instagram site.

They offer both Gi and No-Gi training. But I didn’t have my Gi, so it’s okay to come without a Gi if you don’t have one.

They are located right behind Meskel Square, in Juventus Club. I got a bit lost getting there, but if you get lost, ask the locals about “Juventus Club.” They usually know. Once in Juventus Club, go through until the very end of the complex – there you find their Gym.

And if you take a cab (Feres or Ride are the cab companies in Ethiopia – similar to Uber), tell them to drive you to Meskel Square.

The pricing of this Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Gym is not high if you are used to European or American prices. For exact prices, either contact them on Instagram or Facebook or text Yared (the head coach) directly at his number: +251 92 217 1985.

When I trained there, I discovered that a blue belt training under Kao opened up his own Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Gym in Hawassa, Ethiopia! So I also went and visited them too.

This Gym is much smaller but equally as nice. If you want his contact, contact me or ask the guys in Addis about him.

My Experience at Kao BJJ

I can not speak highly enough of that Gym. They take their training seriously. Their head coach was an American black belt named Colin. Unfortunately, he is no longer there, so the head coach is a purple belt named Yared.

Yared is highly skilled, and he knows how to teach. Even though he knew I would be there for a limited time, he took his time for me. He gave me attention and was super friendly. You can truly feel he’s passionate about what he’s doing.

The Gym is packed on weekdays. Although it is rather small, there’s enough space for everybody.

Their team consists of a great mix of white and blue belts. And from what I saw, the blue belts are legit. They could easily compete with the blue belts in Europe.

I felt welcome there at all times. They were very supportive and welcoming, and I loved training with them. I cannot wait to go back.

The Background of Kao BJJ

The head coach, Yared, has a Judo background and got involved in BJJ (Idk how, good question you should ask him…) He was a blue belt when he started Kao BJJ in Ethiopia.

Then Colin, the American black belt, took over most of the training. Under him, Yared got promoted to a purple belt.

They started small, but over the years, more people became interested. I also saw some non-Ethiopians training there.

Now, they have many great members—many new white belts, some established white belts, and many blue belts.

Now, they are recognized as one of the best BJJ Gyms in East Africa, with many great athletes training there.

The Future of BJJ in Ethiopia

Kao BJJ’s goal is to make Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu more accessible in Africa. They are at the forefront of promoting this beautiful martial art. They are the only ones training BJJ in Ethiopia and want to expand.

They are also cooperating with BJJ Gyms in neighboring African countries. They participate in East African competitions and are heavily involved in the BJJ community.

Their intention is beautiful, and I’m sure they’ll have great success. From what I saw, the future of BJJ in Ethiopia is bright.

Final Words

So, as you can see, I’m a fan. Ethiopia is not easy to navigate at the beginning. I was in a foreign country, which was a lot to process.

But once I went to Kao, things became easier. I met great people, got a lot of guidance and support, and had a great time there.

So, if you’re considering visiting a BJJ Gym in Ethiopia, please do. They are open to everybody and have a great atmosphere.

And if you have any questions, please reach out; I’m happy to help!!

Featured affiliated academy: Principle Jiu Jitsu, Wales

Jiu Jitsu Wales

Where is the gym located?
We are located in Cardiff, South Wales. We operate out of one of the largest gyms in Cardiff and it’s called Ufit.

How many people train there?
We are still a new club but currently we have 9 regular members who are mostly new beginners.

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
We have only been open for a few months but the future is bright. Ufit is a training ground for fitness competitors in Powerlifting, Crossfit, and other disciplines.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
Highest is 4 stripe brown belt and lowest are brand new white belts.

When did Principle Jiu Jitsu, Wales open?
At the start of October 2023.

Some facts about you:

Name: Jason Yean
Age: 39
Belt: Brown
Profession: Sports Masseuse and Rehabilitation
Years in BJJ: 12
Other martial arts: Tae Kwon Do, Ninjitsu
Currently living in: Barry, South Wales
Originally from: Born in South Wales but grew up in Malaysia.

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
I have been looking to start my own gym for a couple of years. It was difficult finding a location, but I was determined to find the right one instead of just teaching for the sake of it. My patience paid off and the location that I’m in at the moment couldn’t be better. We are centrally located in Cardiff and we have natural footfall from experienced competitors in other sports and disciplines.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
The people who train are people who have been going to the gym their whole lives. They were looking for another challenge to complement their training, and they could not have picked a better martial art. We do also get the odd boxer coming through. We get people from other clubs coming to train with us as well. We welcome everyone to train.

Why do they train in Principle Jiu Jitsu, Wales?
They train to challenge themselves. They don’t realise it yet but they’ve been bitten by the BJJ bug.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
The main challenges for me personally are trying to feed my students information in a timely fashion. They are all mostly brand new starters, so I’m taking my time working through the fundamentals so that they can start with good habits.

The financial side is not a concern, as I charge the gym an hourly fee to teach there. This is an avenue I would suggest to anyone wanting to start a new academy.

The other challenge is managing different personalities and egos. It is imperative to keep the vibe positive and friendly, so working through those issues at all times is so important.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
I see it to be a bright one. There are not that many academies in our area and we are a city. I have plans to grow it and make it the best that it can be.

What’s the best thing about Principle Jiu Jitsu, Wales?
We leave our egos at the door and we keep it about Jiu Jitsu

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
Wales is an absolutely beautiful part of the world. We are surrounded by the coast, mountains, and beautiful valleys. Cardiff has got a fantastic night scene and it’s very easy to get around. The Brecon Beacons is a magical trek and insight into the nature that Wales is capable of. We have massive waterfalls and great beaches as well. I am happy to direct any earnest traveller – just get in touch with me.

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Principle Jiu Jitsu, Wales you can contact them here.

Featured Traveller: Melissa Franson – BJJ Globetrotters

Melissa Franson - BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 37

Belt: Blue

Profession: Pharmacist

How many years in BJJ: On and off for 6 or 7 years

Other martial arts: I started with aikido, then switched to judo and BJJ. We’ve started doing some boxing/combatives/MMA in the last couple years at our gym. I competed in Irish Collar and Elbow wrestling at the Faroe Islands camp.

Where do you live: Pittsville, WI, USA

Where are you from: Pittsville

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I also enjoy going hunting. It’s nice knowing where my food comes from how it was handled through the whole process to get to the freezer. It also allows me to spend time outdoors.

Melissa Franson – BJJ Globetrotters Camp in Faroe Islands

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
During most of the first year of COVID, I wasn’t able to train much because of lockdown and then things being crazy with work. I don’t remember how I first found the BJJ Globetrotters website, but I kept looking at the camps and they looked so fun. Eventually I just signed up. I said not being able to travel or train for a year made me do something crazy and sign up for my first camp.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
I just got back from a short trip to Yellowknife, Canada. It took me three flights to get there and three flights back, with only two days in Yellowknife, but it was a great trip and definitely worth it. I got to go dog sledding and I met some amazing people. This was my first time trying out matsurfing.

The next trip I’m planning is to the spring Zen Camp. I plan to go a few days early and stay a few days after the camp so I can do some touristy stuff and see the area. Friends have given me some tips and suggestions, but I don’t have anything set yet.

Melissa Franson – BJJ Globetrotters Camp

What are the things you enjoy about travelling?
There are so many beautiful places around the world. I enjoy being able to see and experience those places. I’ve met some pretty cool people during my travels. And the food, trying different kinds of food… you can’t say you don’t like something if you’ve never tried it.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
When I went to the Maine Camp, I walked into my cabin the first day and the first person I met lives two hours from me. We get together once in a while and have gone to other camps together since. It’s crazy to travel that far to meet someone from home.
The first time I met Alan Titone was at the Arizona camp. He did a class on setting goals and then taking steps to actually accomplish those goals. One of my goals was to go to Sweden and to find relatives that are still living in Sweden. So when I went to the first Faroe Islands camp last year, I decided to take an extra week since I was already in Europe to go to Sweden to visit the country (or one of the countries) my family came from. I was able to meet some distant cousins and even stayed with them for a couple days while I was there.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
How easy it is to travel between countries in Europe.

Melissa Franson – BJJ Globetrotters

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
Sometimes, though not quite as much as I used to when I was a poor college student. When I look at plane tickets, I’ll look at different airports and different days to see where I can find a good deal, but sometimes it’s worth paying a little more for a direct flight. I’ve stayed in hostels instead of a hotel so that I can spend a little more on experiences.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
I like to look up things to do, but only book one or two things ahead of time. Then when I get wherever I’m going, I ask locals what they recommend doing or seeing. They can tell you if the things you find online are worth doing/seeing or if there’s something else that’s better/less crowded.

Thank you to Melissa Franson – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Featured Camp Instructor: PJ Lucey – BJJ Globetrotters

PJ Lucey - BJJ Globetrotters

PJ Lucey – BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 42 years young
Belt: Blackbelt under John Kavanagh
Profession: School Teacher

Started training (year): 2009
City/country: Killarney, Co Kerry. Ireland

 

Main achievements in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu:

Multiple times Irish national Champion

Multi NAGA medalist

IBJJF London Open Gold Blue/Purple

British Open Medallist

IBJJF European Gold Blue

Founder and head coach of SBG Killarney

Now BJJ Globetrotter Instructor

PJ Lucey – BJJ Competition

 

Which Globetrotters camps have you attended:

Iceland Camp 2022 (Participant)

Winter Camp Austria 2023 (Instructor)

Beach Camp Parnu, Estonia 2023 (Instructor)

Summer Camp Heidelberg, Germany 2023 (Instructor)

 

 

Which camp has been your favorite so far?

It’s not an easy task to select one. Each camp is very different but if I was pushed, I would choose the Winter camp in Wagrain, Austria. This was my 1st camp as an instructor, so naturally it will always stand out for me. On top of this the camp is amazing, as all the participants sleep, drink, eat, socialise, and train under the same roof, so for me that is something special.

 

PJ Lucey- BJJ Globetrotters Summer Camp

 

Favorite stories/moments from the camps?

I have loads of fond memories, stories and moments from my camp days.

Highlights like momentarily holding the camp record, “most rounds sparred” was cool. Until I was quickly dethroned in the next camp by Alexander Neufang. Drinking a bar dry at the winter camp is always going to be a proud moment for an Irishman. Midnight techno bunker open mat in Austria was up there too. Hanging out with the crew at the beach in Parnu, an Apreol Spritz in one hand and pizza in the other is hard to beat.

As an instructor, people coming up to you, saying that they loved your class, or they are having success with your workshop material is always going to be great. The globetrotter’s camp has given me a springboard to meet new people, travel and get invited to gym/academies all over the world. For this I am very grateful.

 

Your favorite class/classes to teach at camp? 

 

PJ Lucey – BJJ Globetrotters Beach Camp

I have taught 3 classes to date.

  1.     Passing the upright/ sitting guard, Riverdance style.
  2.     Guard passing from HQ- surfing and floating.
  3.     Cooking your opponent from side control.

I got the most positive feedback and follow up requests for the cooking workshop so I will choose that as my favourite for now.

I love it when people get in touch with me so If anyone wishes to contact me about any of my classes material, workshops etc please don’t hesitate to message me through the social media channels. SBG killarney or @coachpjlucey.

***

PJ Lucey – BJJ Globetrotters instructor

Featured affiliated academy: NOVO Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Ecuador

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Ecuador

Where is the gym located?
Ambato, Ecuador.

How many people train there?
52 people including kids, teenagers, and adults.

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
Maybe two or three new members each month.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
The highest are 2 black belts and the lowest belts are white.

When did NOVO Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Ecuador open?
We opened the gym on April 15, 2022.

Some facts about you:

Name: Francisco Melendez
Age: 33
Belt: Black
Profession: Industrial design engineer
Years in BJJ: 11
Other martial arts: Judo (orange belt)
Currently living in: Ambato, Ecuador
Originally from: Ambato, Ecuador

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
The idea of opening a Jiu Jitsu academy came from a friend with whom I’d trained since our first day as white belts. In addition to having the pleasure of teaching and transmitting all our knowledge acquired during all this training time.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
Most of our members are adults who I have known since my time as a student. Everyone, despite having their professional jobs, takes their time to train. This is something that motivates you as a teacher every day. Among them I have doctors, engineers, lawyers, chefs, and judo/MMA/karate teachers who want to learn another type of discipline.

Why do they train in NOVO Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Ecuador?
The majority of people who train are here to relieve stress from day-to-day life. Other people train to improve their health and physical condition. In the case of children, parents enroll them to develop discipline in their little ones, and so they can learn self-defense.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
I think that the main challenge of opening a martial arts gym is the economic part, because you don’t know what kind of reception it will receive. And in this area there is a general lack of knowledge about Jiu Jitsu because it is a relatively new discipline here, which is why you have to teach a love for it.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
From my point of view, I see that Jiu Jitsu is going to grow a lot in this area, because we have many people who compete nationally and internationally and make the name of the city stand out.

What’s the best thing about NOVO Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Ecuador?
The best thing for me about my gym is the space. It is a very spacious place in addition to having a small area for physical conditioning. On the other hand, it is the camaraderie – the friendship that each of the people who make up the team have where we can go out with each other and share moments on and off the tatami.

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
The city where I am is a very quiet place, but we are close to a very touristy place called Baños de Agua Santa, a city where many people from abroad come for its variety of attractions.

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit NOVO Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Ecuador can contact them here.

Featured traveller: Anna Fischer – BJJ Globetrotters

Anna Fischer - BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 28

Belt: Blue

Profession: I’m studying Plant Sciences at the University of Helsinki.

How many years in BJJ: 5

Other martial arts: I’ve trained Krav Maga for 3 years.

Where do you live: Helsinki, Finland

Where are you from: A small village in the south of Germany

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I’m really into plants. I’m a trained gardener. Cacti are my favourite plants – they’re really fascinating and have the big advantage that they can survive without water or any care for several weeks while I’m traveling.

I also really like to learn languages. So if you see me at some camp and want to practice some fancy language, I’m in! Besides German and English I can offer a bit of French, Finnish, Portuguese, and Spanish (in that order) and if I should ever have time I want to learn Swedish and Dutch. And some of the Cyrillic alphabet. The problem is I don’t have time.

Anna Fischer – BJJ Globetrotters

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
I’ve always liked traveling. Before I even knew what Jiu Jitsu was, I did some solo trips to the German and Austrian mountains and to Portugal. Then I figured out that Jiu Jitsu exists and stopped taking longer trips because I didn’t want to miss training. I was in a dilemma. I didn’t know back then how open and visitor friendly the Jiu Jitsu community is. Then I was randomly talking about single leg takedowns with a guy from my gym and afterwards he sent me a link to a BJJ Globetrotters video that covered that topic. That’s how I first heard about the Globetrotters. Learning that I can go to a Jiu Jitsu camp for a whole week and train as much as I want and at the same time explore a new city or country was amazing. I signed up for my first camp and knew immediately that this is how I will spend my holidays from now on.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
My most recent trip was to Rome to participate in the Rome Open and the European Nogi championships in October together with my partner. Well, let me put it like this: I should work on my armbar defence. My partner did better and brought home gold. It was nice to catch some sun before the Finnish winter.

I’ve planned two more trips for this year: one weekend trip to Berlin to participate in a Grappling Industries tournament, and then I will visit my family in Germany over Christmas. There’s a small gym nearby which I’ve already visited a few times, so I’m looking forward to meeting the group again. And then I want to visit the two gyms where I trained before I moved. It’s been almost a year since I was there last time. I hope somebody trains there at that time of the year. But I’m sure I can organize the key and some motivated old training partners.

Anna Fischer – BJJ Globetrotters

What are the things you enjoy about travelling?
I like to get to know new countries and their culture, cities, people, and nature. Traveling is always a little adventure and a break from whatever might be stressful in life. And traveling also teaches me a lot about myself. Not everything goes as planned and difficulties can pop up everywhere. Finding solutions for all kind of problems makes you grow a lot as a person.

I’m a very introverted person and always had problems with socializing and talking to strangers. When traveling within the Jiu Jitsu community, things are a bit easier because there are so many like-minded people. From these travels, I’ve learned that it’s worth pushing myself out of my comfort zone for a while, and nowadays I enjoy meeting new Jiu Jitsu people from all around the globe.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
I stayed in a Japanese village in the middle of the Polish nowhere and trained on the hugest matspace ever. I wrestled with a Viking and hiked in a country where hot water shoots out of the ground. I had a wrestling match in an Estonian bog. I rolled at an open mat from midnight till 3 in the morning until I almost fell asleep while trying to choke people. There are so many great memories. But one memory sticks with me particularly…

When I started training Jiu Jitsu, I used to train in two very small gyms in southern Germany – the only ones in the whole area. In the beginning it was only me and a handful of big, skilled guys most of the time. I didn’t mind that and really enjoyed training, but I had serious doubts that I will ever reach a somewhat reasonable level, or even get a blue belt. Then I went to my first Globetrotters camp and there were so many women, mostly blue and purple belts. I had never seen a woman with a colored belt before. I was quite intimidated, but they were all so nice and trained with me and gave me tips. I was really looking up to them.

Years later, I eventually made it to blue and was asked to teach classes in one of my old gyms and also in two other small gyms in Germany I have visited. There were these white belt women everywhere and at some point I realized that they are just like I was back then, but the roles have switched. Now I can pass on the inspiration I once received. In these moments I always have to think back to that overwhelming experience at my first camp and I’m so grateful for the Globetrotters community.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
The most surprising thing so far happened at the Globetrotters Fall Camp in Tallinn in 2021. It was my second camp, and my first time in Estonia. I had signed up for a group dinner and was curious to meet new people, but at the same time I was also a bit nervous because I’m not very good at talking with strangers and often end up saying no more than a few words. And then there was this guy at my table, wearing a t-shirt with an “Introverted, but willing to discuss Jiu Jitsu” print. So I talked with him. Over the next few days he kept asking me out for dinner, and we trained and rolled together quite a few times. And well, now I’m writing this text from Helsinki because I moved in with this guy. I ended up living in a country I probably wouldn’t have been able to point out on a map before the Tallinn camp, and coming here has been one of the best decisions in my life so far.

Anna Fischer – BJJ Globetrotters

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
Kind of. Travelling and training is where I’m willing to spend my money, but since the university doesn’t pay me to study plants, I try to look for cheaper options when there are alternatives. Booking flights and train tickets well in advance can save a lot of money. I’ve also slept on some airport benches because the options with an overnight layover were much cheaper. Not sure if I can recommend that though – they were not the most comfortable nights. The airport in Helsinki was really okay, but Riga and Munich were not so much fun. I also try to travel light. Often hand luggage is enough and much cheaper when flying.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Go out and discover the world. Just do it. There is so much waiting for you out there. The destination doesn’t have to be the other end of the globe. Sometimes amazing experiences are waiting in the next town just a few minutes away.

Try to train with many different people from many different gyms. That has helped me a lot to improve my Jiu Jitsu and it’s fun.

Don’t blindly trust everyone. Often I watch people train or roll first before I pair up with them, especially when there’s a big weight difference.

Always bring enough tape. It can fix everything. Your body, shoes, tent, phone… everything.

Thank you to Anna Fischer – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Featured affiliated academy: Lake Atitlán BJJ Guatemala

Lake Atitlán BJJ Guatemala

Where is the gym located?
San Marcos, Lake Atitlán, Guatemala

(Locally we organize under the umbrella name “KEFI Collective” as a way to brand ourselves beyond just “the dudes who do Jiu-Jitsu.” Makes it easier to find us when you’re in the area.

But for all intents and purposes, “Lake Atitlan BJJ” works just as well.)

How many people train there?
We have about 4-6 core members who train regularly (and who actually live here long enough to train regularly). This number is constantly fluctuating since it’s a small town with lots of travelers coming through.

We live in a small town in rural Guatemala. So formalized martial arts is hard to find out here. But one thing we do have is lots of travelers. We’re constantly posting about our trainings with the intention of catching any traveling practitioners who have an itch to train.

It works great during the high season when lots of travelers are around (Nov to Apr). But come low season (May to Oct), it’s mostly back to our dedicated core members.

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
We’re not a gym. It functions more like a structured open mat session.

We’re simply a group of martial arts how train together, and welcome anybody else how has skills/experience to share.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training in Lake Atitlán BJJ Guatemala?
We’ve had the full range of belts training with us. Just recently we had a brown belt stay in town for a few months. He helped out a lot in teaching techniques.

When did the gym open?
~Spring 2021

Some facts about you:

Name: Alphi Quitevis
Age: 37
Belt: White belt (my skill level is probably closer to blue belt, but since we don’t have a formal gym/school, there aren’t belts being earned)
Profession: Business Development Manager
Years in BJJ: 3
Other martial arts: MMA (a little bit from everywhere: Muay Thai + boxing + wrestling + judo), escrima. I was in the US Marine Corps for 8 years and trained in various modalities of combat and defense, including multiple weapons.
Currently living in: San Marcos, Lake Atitlán, Guatemala
Originally from: Chicago, USA

 

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
In the first half of 2021, Jonathan Landa and his friend Milton (blue belt) threw out a post on the local Facebook community group, to paraphrase, “Anybody want to do Jiu-Jitsu?” All they had was a single set of puzzle-piece fitness mats. Two weeks later, I answered their post and joined the training. Another week later a giant blue belt Scotsman joins (who would later put us onto BJJ Globetrotters).

With other people coming in/out of the mix, we then start rolling twice a week, every week. Open mat style.

We did it for 6-7 months straight, just a handful of us. The blue belts helped spin Jonathan and I up to speed (I had some grappling experience from my time in the Marine Corps, to which we transitioned to more BJJ-specific training). We soaked up whatever experience travelers had to share. Blue belts, purple, brown, black. They’ve all come through. Couple of Globetrotters too.

With exception of periods wherein the core group breaks away due to travel (since many of us are foreigners on tourist visas in Guatemala) this “collective” style of training continues.

As mentioned earlier, Jonathan is a big part of why we still train. He’s the one that started organizing people under the KEFI Collective.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
Our core group is an international group of misfits. Jonathan is local Guatemalan; he’s the bulldog. Fitness trainer background, strong af. He’s the backbone of this whole operation. Has an iron half guard that damn-near impossible to pull out — like a bulldog.

We have an Italian guy, Edo. BackgroA/boxund in MMing, with professional cage experience. A big dude, Italian Stallion. Has a mean overhand left, but on the ground he’s quite fluid.

We have Timo, French guy. Tall and long, slender limbs. Years of Muay Thai experience who helps us when we train MMA/striking on Thursdays. He teaches us Muay Thai, we teach him ground game. Has a beautiful question mark kick.

There’s Medhi, another French guy. Years of BJJ experience, Animal Flow trainer. Another beast of a man. Loooong arms which he takes advantage of by specializing with the darce and anacondas.

Until recently, we had a brown belt — Tom — from the US, train with us regularly. He had to go back to the States, but he plans to return in the Spring to stay for long term. Older gentleman in his 50s with average height and build, but could put a hurtin’ on any of us young bucks with his big ol’ head. He gives Edo and Medhi a run for their money.

Why do they train in Lake Atitlán BJJ Guatemala?
I suppose it’s the same for most people on the Warrior path: learn skills/stay sharp, challenge ourselves, stay in shape, camaraderie, and most importantly, have fun.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
Getting enough people to train has always been the challenge since day one. It’s in part to the fact that we’re in rural Guatemala, and that a lot of people who train are only traveling through (whether only for a few days or a few weeks).

For our core group, since we are so few, we have to rely on our training partners to stay committed to training and show up in order to have a solid session.

We have a rule of thumb: if at least three people are available for a training session, we’ll open up the space and train.

A majority of the time it’s no problem, but we all have different lives. Some weeks we may have some guys out to due to travel, or work, or injury, etc.

It’s always possible to train 1 on 1, but having various people to roll with is a lot more fun.

Social media marketing helps to bring in new bodies.

Again, this isn’t so much an issue in the high season, when lots of travelers come through.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
The more the merrier.

ONE IDEA: Jonathan owns a local hotel business. It would be interesting to have some kind of work exchange for traveling practitioners (higher belts) to come and stay for a few week/months to teach us things in exchange for, say free accommodation and a place to train while they’re traveling. We’d have to figure out those logistical details, but it’s an interesting idea to play with.

Aside from our group, there are other BJJ/martial arts practitioners around our area. So I only hope to continue spreading martial arts in all its forms in the area.

There are other grapplers on the other side of the lake. But since boat travel across the lake isn’t really convenient for regular training, they don’t come through as much. It would be nice to grow the group AND training facilities to the point where we can host each others’ groups, say once a month, to have friendly training sessions together.

Additionally, there’s an MMA fighter in the area (trained in Gracie Barra lineage; aiming for the UFC) who wants to eventually build a formal martial arts school and have other fighters come through. His organizational philosophy is quite different from ours, as you might imagine from his time with Gracie Barra, but as long as we have more and more practitioners in the area we see it as a benefit.

What’s the best thing about Lake Atitlán BJJ Guatemala?
We train hard, kickin’ each other’s asses, but we’re all pretty laid back because of the relatively informal nature of the training.

And we live in a jungle paradise.

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
We live on an insanely beautiful lake surrounded by three volcanoes. A simple Google search of “Lake Atitlan” will turn up endless sights and activities to see.

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Lake Atitlán BJJ Guatemala, you can contact them here.

Featured traveller: Nathan Featherstone – BJJ Globetrotters

Nathan Featherstone - BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 33

Belt: Purple

Profession: Martial arts and fitness coach

How many years in BJJ: 12 (with time off due to injuries and lockdowns)

Other martial arts: Irish stick fighting (Doyle and Antrim style), Dog Brothers martial arts, Collar and Elbow wrestling.
Previously karate, boxing, muay thai, MMA, Judo, HEMA, and capoeira.

Where do you live: Dublin, Ireland

Where are you from: Wicklow, Ireland

Other fun or curious information you would like to share:

  • I teach both BJJ and stick fighting in my gym. With my stick fighting I teach two styles of Irish stick fighting, which is a martial art indigenous to the island and very unknown to many. With my background in combat arts I wanted to test this material out and make sure it worked, which led me to the Dog Brothers who do full contact sparring bouts with sticks and various other weapons. Picture MMA with sticks and a fencing mask. This has also made me work really heavily on stick grappling, which is a really interesting way to look at BJJ and grappling.
  • I run a Youtube channel all about Irish history and martial arts called the Rambling Kern. I have done all sorts of historical recreations since my teens. which led me to combine all of my various obscure hobbies into one place.
  • I am a pretty big nerd and like to take on a new pursuit every year or two. Growing up in a rural area I don’t want to miss out on things now I’m all grown up and able to do things. As a result I’ve trained in a lot of martial arts and recently got heavily into learning knife throwing, which has been way more complex than I ever thought. I had a friend pass away during Covid who used to play Dungeons and Dragons, and I started playing with some of his old group at first as a way to remember him. Ever since I’ve gotten hooked and am big into playing on my time off.

Nathan Featherstone – BJJ Globetrotters

 

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
From a very young age I always wanted to grow old and be like Master Splinter from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Seeing a documentary about Helio Gracie and seeing him rolling at such an old age made me want to take up BJJ. From there I wanted to travel and learn BJJ. With Ireland being such a small island, early on that was the best way to learn, but now we have some of the best instructors around. This curiosity also made me want to discover if Ireland had its own martial arts, and I found that out it did. This really pushed me to want to visit other places and learn about their past and travel and train with those I could.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
I’ve just gotten back from teaching Irish stick fighting and Collar and Elbow wrestling in Florida. As part of the trip I got to teach at a yearly Escrima meet up, which was amazing getting to learn so many unique martial arts in one place. Next month I’ll be going to Holland for my first actual break in a few years, and I’ll hopefully get in some training while there.

Nathan Featherstone – BJJ Globetrotters

What are the things you enjoy about travelling?
I love to learn about a country’s past. Not just the old buildings, but the land, wildlife, foods, and cultures. It’s a real bonus for me to learn about their martial past as I love that stuff. Things like local martial arts styles, wrestling, or fencing are all really fascinating to me. Getting to train with local people often opens up some really fun chances to see and experience parts of a country only a few people get to see.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
It’s hard to pick out any single moment due to all of the weird martial arts I have had the chance to train in old fortresses and castles, on top of mountains, in swamps, and just experience some amazing parts of the world with really cool people. On my last trip alone I got the chance to swim with dolphins and manatees, which was incredible.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
I’ve found for me it’s coming across people in really far-flung parts of the world who know all about some obscure town in Ireland. Or, even more surprisingly, knowing someone you know, which I have had happen.

Nathan Featherstone – BJJ Globetrotters

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
Yes, I tend to travel on a budget. Travelling light and staying somewhere I can cook at least a few meals often saves me a lot of money and allows me to spend more on worthwhile things like training and experiences.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Look up. Often there are some really interesting things above us in cities that can be hard to spot if you’re focused on the streets below.

Thank you to Nathan Featherstone – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Featured Camp Instructor: Paul Urbanik – BJJ Globetrotters

Paul Urbanik - BJJ Globetrotters

Paul Urbanik – BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 35
Belt:  Blackbelt in Luta Livre (brazilian catch wrestling) Blackbelt in BJJ
Profession: Teacher for Mathematics, Physics, IT

Started training (year): Started my grappling journey 2008
City/country: Paderborn, Germany

 

Main achievements in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu:

It’s hard to say. There were some competition results that I’m quite happy with but most of the times the one where you place are not the memories you’re to proud of. For me the things I’m most proud of are not on the competition mats but rather things around the sport. Looking back I’m happy that i had the time to create stuff in the community. A teammate of mine (Sven Goder) and myself ran the first German blog about the grappling community in Germany (grapplersparadise) for quite some time, interviewing a lot of people and even publishing three magazines. Besides that I ripped of other peoples work by organizing some weekend camps called „Mattentreffen“, after I couldn’t attend the Globetrotter camps (because at that time Christian didn’t host that many and I need to stick to the holidays) as well as a EBI Rip Off called „This is MATness“. But all of that slowly faded because Life is kinda busy sometimes. But above all I’m most glad that i could be a part of our team „Paderborn Wombats“ and help the team and gym evolve to what it is today, as well as working together with likeminded people with the aim to create a place to enjoy the sport. #wombat4ever

Paul Urbanik – BJJ Globetrotters

 

Which Globetrotters camps have you attended:

I started off pretty early with the camps in Copenhagen in 2013. After that I attended several camps in Leuven and Austria. Lately I tried to attend at least 2 camps a year with Austria, Estonia and Heidelberg being the last ones.

 

Which camp has been your favorite so far?

Looking back at the camps the Copenhagen ones stand out the most because it was such a different vibe compared to the whole scene back then. Nowadays I really love the Winter camps, maybe because I don’t need to do laundry and the whole camp stays at one place.

 

Paul Urbanik- BJJ Globetrotters

 

Favorite stories/moments from the camps?

One of the best memories was the CSA anniversary at the Summer camp in Copenhagen. Christian went all out with this one with free BBQ, drinks and a MMA event containing a David vs. Golliath match beween a 120kg Danish monster and a small child (not serious of course) and a BJJ match in suits.

 

Your favorite class/classes to teach at camp? 

 

It really depends on what I’ve been working on but i love to teach guard passing, darces and leglocks.

 

 

 

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Paul Urbanik – BJJ Globetrotters instructor

Travelling and Training Martial Arts in the 90’s

Before BJJ

Back in the mid 90’s in my late teens/early 20’s I wasn’t aware Brazilian Jiu Jitsu existed. I was training other martial arts. I started with Taekwondo but soon lost interest in that when my best friend Rich introduced me to Wing Chun.

Later I would also mess around with a little JKD and Kali and much later Boxing and Muay Thai, before finally giving up all forms of striking in my late thirties for pure grappling only.

I don’t know why I’m high kicking this dummy, there’s no high kicks in Wing Chun 😆

I trained Wing Chun with Rich for around six years, at first with Sifu Anton Van Thomas in various parts of London and Surrey and then Rich and I left for Hong Kong to train with the late Grandmaster Ip Ching, the youngest son of Ip Man, who’s since been cemented in martial arts history with a string of part biographical, part fictional movies.

His older brother Yip Chun was more famous but was getting pretty old and frail by then and we were far more taken by the much younger, more sturdy and robust brother who taught at the Hong Kong Ving Tsun Athletic Association in Mong Kok where we travelled to classes by bus, ferry and then MTR, twice a week from our beachside apartment on Lantau Island.

We also arranged weekly private lessons at his home, a modest apartment where he and his wife lived, which also housed his father’s wooden dummy, the same dummy Bruce Lee had learnt on many years before, which felt like a ridiculous honour for two young foreigners obsessed with martial arts.

Terrible quality photos but it’s all we have, this was pre smart phones and it’s only due to Rich having a camera that we have anything at all.

Training in Hong Kong

There was only just enough room in that apartment to complete all three hand forms, Mook Yan Jong (wooden dummy), Baht Cham Do (butterfly knives) and Lok Dim Boon Kwan (6 and a half point pole), though I’m sure we almost put holes in their wall on a few occasions.

Grandmaster Ip Ching did not speak any English so a student of his was kind enough to join almost every session to translate for us. There were a couple of occasions where he wasn’t there and we muddled through but there was definitely one very memorable time for me, where both the translator and Rich were not able to come and I found myself alone with the Grandmaster for our private session. The training was fine but a two hour class is a long session and we’d always stop for a break half way through where his wife would bring us tea and we would sit for a few minutes before resuming training. I had spent a year previous to our first trip trying to learn Cantonese but now I’m trying to learn French I know that an hour’s class once a week was next to worthless. In that awkward break I got my notebook out and tried to say a few basic things. Suffice to say he politely shook his head and hand, very clearly saying “I don’t know what you’re trying to say and I never will, please stop”. I did stop and never tried again 🤣

We spent six months in Hong Kong and a year or so later we returned again for another three and a half months. Both trips we were able to stay at my Godmother’s little holiday apartment on the beach, which was as memorable a part of the whole experience as the training.

It was pretty dirty and basic with cockroaches, geckos and other wildlife often shacking up with us but we absolutely loved it. We ate instant noodles at the beachside cafes and played a lot of frisbee on the beach, the cleanest beach in Hong Kong at the time. We waited tables and bar tended, taught English and played a lot of pool at a bar near the ferry, sometimes winning enough prize money to pay for our food and drinks. Rich practised his magic tricks on the giggling local girls, we played chess late into the night, listened to music, watched movies, played table tennis at a local club and practiced our forms on our rooftop terrace.

Aside from our three trips into the city to train every week, we ventured further afield here and there too. We visited the Bruce Lee Cafe of course, a few other Wing Chun clubs including one at a University and we bought our own original Wing Chun Poles and Knives from a famous shop specialising in martial arts weapons.

We visited my Godmother every now and then, who lived with her young son in an apartment up in the hills and she sometimes invited us out on her friend’s boat or for a meal at the fancy Hong Kong Yacht Club. Through her we landed a job painting and decorating a beautiful house while the tenants were away and to this day I’m pretty sure we did a good job, even though we were so young and inexperienced.

At the end of our second trip Grandmaster Ip Ching gave us photocopies of his father’s recipe for Dit Da Jow, a famous blend of dried plants which are left for years to soak in rice wine and the resulting tincture used to treat bruising. It smells… unique… but it’s actually quite effective. Our friendly and helpful translator took us off to the Chinese medicine shops to buy the ingredients, which were vacuum packed for us and we managed to get home in one piece. That pack of dried bark and spices sat in my cupboard for years but eventually I did actually make a big flagon of it and it even made it out to Myanmar with me when I moved there years later.

After that second trip Grandmaster Ip Ching said he didn’t have anything left to teach us and we had to just keep practising what we’d learnt. He presented us with our Instructor Certificates and off we went to a local mall to have business cards made with shiny metallic embossed lettering with both English and Chinese characters.

I never really intended to teach but Rich returned for a forth trip a few years later and taught Wing Chun in London for many years. He always excelled at anything physical and was and still is an outstanding teacher. He’s a qualified swimming and tennis coach and now a BJJ black belt coach too and puts a lot of thought into his teaching.

On that second trip I had already started a business plan for a martial arts social club, which eventually did come to fruition a couple of years later, albeit in a slightly different form. Rather than try to describe Ginglik, the club in Shepherds Bush London which I owned and ran for 11 years with my boyfriend and business partner Colin, I have a video on my channel which will give you a good idea.

Play Fighting to BJJ

Before I discovered BJJ I had returned to Wing Chun after an eight year hiatus while running Ginglik, this time with Rich as my coach instead of training partner.

A bunch of Wing Chun buddies were round at my flat in London one evening and we started play fighting as we often did, which is always tricky when you only train a striking art. You can’t generally punch and kick your friends, though I’ve suffered plenty of dead arms and legs and dished a few out too. Not for the first time I found myself pinned to the floor and in that moment I knew the time had come to learn some grappling.

Having someone bigger and stronger sit on me and then pin my hands to the ground, was frustrating and scary and it made me appreciate how lucky I was to have only ever experienced it with my brother or other martial arts friends, whom I trusted. I never wanted to be in that position with someone I didn’t trust or who intended to harm me.

One of the guys told me a very reputable gym had just moved premises from Hammersmith, which wasn’t too far away, to a street just a short walk away. This gym was Carlson Gracie London and I soon rocked up one evening for a free trial class.

I was partnered with a brown belt guy who was around my size. He was so nice, patient and helpful and maybe if I’d had a very different experience that first class I would not have wanted to return. I wish I knew who he was so I could thank him now. Partly due to him I immediately fell in love with Jiu Jitsu and definitely wanted to keep training.

Carlson’s policy at the time was to encourage only serious students, so there was no drop in fee (even now this is discouraged with a very high drop in fee) and membership was priced such that only training several times a week made it reasonable. I was only able to train once a week at that time but I noticed that you didn’t have to be a member to take private lessons and that if you shared the private lesson with a friend you halved the cost.

I convinced several of my Wing Chun buddies to join me for private classes. Rich was one of them and our great friend Ash was another, now a brown belt. The others didn’t take to it quite the same! It’s not for everyone 😆

After about six months of these weekly classes, give or take a few, I left to go travelling for six months, intending to head straight back to resume training somehow, though with the club in London closed I wasn’t sure how I would earn a living or even afford to live in London. Turns out I never had to.

Thanks for reading,
Tammi

Next Time…

My first BJJ experience abroad, alone in Pattaya, Thailand on a Muay Thai camp with a visiting Aussie black belt teaching BJJ and some crazy Russians trying to break me, a week before I move to live in Myanmar and discover there’s no mats to train on, anywhere 😅

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Alan’s Summer Camp

What a dreamy beginner of summer I had! I took my home on wheels and headed towards Riihimäki, a small town in Southern Finland. I have friends and family members living around the area and quite few of them do jiujitsu as well so it’s very convenient when I can take care of my social life and training at once!

Anyway, woke up to this beautiful, hot summer day and Alan Do Nascimento aka Finfou was having one week Summer Camp in Heracles Academy. Alan is originally from Brazil but has been In Stockholm, Sweden as a head coach in Allstars Training Center for several years. He’s been in the sport about the same amount of years than I’ve been on this earth so I was looking forward the classes and maybe hearing some stories throughout those years.

I got to the first class just on time and as a nice surprise my brown belt brother was also there! First class was with gi and we were going through k-guard/matrix-guard and different scenarios from there, usually ending up with ankle locks. I’m very intuitive in sports and if somebody would ask me what is the name of certain guard or how to do it, I probably wouldn’t be able to answer, I just do different guards whenever they feel good of doing without any analyzing :D And I remember first time somebody showed me k-guard I wasn’t too convinced I’d implemented that in my game. But now there’s been quite a few seminars/classes based on this technique and I’m starting to warm up for the idea and actually got few successful situations with k-guard in sparring. Alan had very nice way of teaching, there were lots of reps and he was explaining key parts and principles of the techniques instead of going into super specific details.

After the training I invited myself to my friends place and we had a nice catch up over the lunch. Also they let me take a short nap in their children’s room on a proper bed, which was well needed after sleeping all these months in a van. We all drove back to the academy for the second training session, which continued the same theme as the morning class but as nogi. As much as I enjoy meeting new people, it’s always such a joy to train with old friends. There were lots of laughter and sweaty hugs to give. And because training is not really training without sauna on top, we rented a cutest little sauna by this beautiful lake close-by. To wrap up this beautiful day, I invited my dear friend Sofia for a sleepover in my BJJBiili.

We stayed the night by the lake and had a refreshing skinny dip before brekkie in the morning! After swimming and breakfast we headed to the morning nogi-class and continued with ankle locks. At this point my calves and ankles had already gotten nice summer look :D A group of us headed for the lunch after the class and we spent almost 2 hours talking and Alan was telling such interesting stories of his years in jiujitsu. The sport has definitely lived through changes throughout those years. It seemed to be such a wild west back in the days!
Alan’s classes, seeing my close ones and hanging by the lake were such a good kick start for the summer and for the next leg of the journey: 4 day Everyday Porrada Camp in the cutest Finnish summer town!

Featured affiliated academy: Pirate BJJ, USA

Pirate BJJ, USA

Where is the gym located?
Pirate BJJ
312 Palmer Road, Suite A
Madison, AL 35758
USA

How many people train there?
Currently we have 30 kids training and 9 adults, hoping to continue to grow both the adult and kid classes.

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
We are growing! Albeit slowly, we’ve been adding 1-2 people here and there. It’s still our first month of operation so people are just finding out about Pirate BJJ. We have had a couple new kids since opening and a couple new adults.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
Highest belt is a 1 stripe purple. The lowest is a no stripe white belt with a couple weeks of training.

When did Pirate BJJ, USA open?
Labor Day – September 4th, 2023!

Some facts about you:

Name: Seth Spratlin
Age: 37
Belt: 1 stripe brown
Profession: Mechanical Engineer
Years in BJJ: 6, my jiu jitsuversary is August 7th, 2017
Other martial arts: None
Currently living in: Madison, Alabama, United States
Originally from: I was born in Charleston, South Carolina. My dad is a Marine so growing up we moved every three years all over the US. I would call the southeastern US where I’m from. Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina are where I’ve lived the most.

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
Well, like all good pirate stories, my gym began as a mutiny. I had been training at the same gym since starting Jiu Jitsu, and after a couple years had created and was running my own kids class. This former gym was set to move to a new building and was merging with a karate program into a mega-martial arts thing. I have long had a tumultuous relationship with my former coach, and I found out he was plotting to steal my kids’ class from me in the move and reorganization. So I struck first, and opened Pirate BJJ, taking my kids class and a few adults with me in the split.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
I call them the Skeleton Crew: those few plucky adults who came with me in the move. They are less traditional, less formal than many practitioners. Most of them, myself included, are nerds. We like watching UFC, and we all have engineering and/or military service backgrounds. We don’t like silly warmups before class, and everyone is excited that I am moving to the ecological approach of teaching jiu jitsu.

Why do they train in Pirate BJJ, USA?
Everyone has their own reasons. I know one is a lifelong martial artist who discovered he liked BJJ the best, another is former military who fell in love with BJJ after training combatives in the Army. Some are high school wrestlers who do BJJ because it’s like the pickup basketball version of their sport, and some are just coworkers of all these people: they got pestered enough to try it and now we won’t let them quit.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
There are two main challenges I’ve faced so far. The first being the wearing of many, many hats. I’m not just an instructor, I’m the adult class instructor, the kids class instructor, the mat enforcer when out of towners visit, I’m also doing construction work to remodel the inside of my building to function as a gym better, I’m a businessman getting all the appropriate licenses and equipment, I’m the accountant doing billing and payments, I’m the IT guy running our website and social media presence (Pirate BJJ on FB and @piratebjjllc on Instagram!). If it’s related to running the gym then I’m either doing it myself or coordinating getting it done.

The other big challenge is one of the hats – advertising. Just getting the word out so that people know we exist. But doing that cheaply because everything about opening a gym is expensive. It’s tough.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
There’s a ton of potential here. We’re in Madison, but basically a suburb of Huntsville. There’s a huge Army base here, tons of law enforcement, and lots and lots of other engineering nerds like myself. Along with the ever-increasing popularity of BJJ, there’s just going to be a ton of growth in the area. I think there will be several more gyms that open in the next few years, hopefully mine has grown dramatically in that time.

What’s the best thing about Pirate BJJ, USA?
The merch! Everybody loves a pirate theme! Ha, but seriously the openness. I have belt requirements and expectations available for anyone to review, so what I think constitutes each belt level is not a secret. I’m always happy to talk with anybody about what I’m doing or why in terms of how I teach classes and how I do promotions. I actively encourage everyone to go train anywhere and everywhere, and we gladly welcome anybody who wants to train, regardless of whatever gym they call home. And we have an excellent group here. We like to train hard and get after it and help each other get better, but we all have jobs to go to the next day so we take care of each other as well. Everybody here is just chasing skill, trying to get better at this crazy art we all love.

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
The NASA Space and Rocket center is not even 5 minutes away from Pirate BJJ. It is a fascinating place to tour if you are remotely interested in space or the US history of space travel. A lot of retired engineers who worked on programs like Apollo just hang out there and they are happy to talk about what it was like and what they worked on.

We have a ton of fabulous local breweries, restaurants, and food trucks right here in Huntsville and Madison. There’s a thriving classic car scene here as well. We’re also close to a lot of cool places to visit: Memphis, Muscle Shoals, Nashville if you like blues and country music, and Atlanta is just around the corner too.

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Pirate BJJ, USA you can contact them here.

Featured Camp Instructor: Stevie Antoniou – BJJ Globetrotters

Stevie Antoniou - BJJ Globetrotters

Stevie Antoniou – BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 28
Belt: Black
Profession: Photographer and wilderness guide

Started training (year): 2008
City/country: Stockholm/Sweden

 

Main achievements in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu:

 I have medals from ‘’back in the day’’ but I haven’t competed in years.

 

Which Globetrotters camps have you attended:

I’m at 19 camps now so pretty much all of them except the very early ones and Faroe Islands.

 

Which camp has been your favorite so far?

Stevie Antoniou – BJJ Globetrotters Carribean Camp

 

Either Zen camp or St Barth. Zen because it’s so chill and has a sick location. St Barth because the island is amazing and it’s the exact opposite of Stockholm haha.

 

Favorite stories/moments from the camps?

Well, the Globetrotter Grand Prix scooter race in Pärnu is definitely up there. The boat party at St Barth 2019 was incredible. My favourite memory overall is just filming the documentary and doing all the camps 2019. Such a crazy year full of amazing memories. I can’t believe how many great people I got to meet and how many friends I made in a year.

 

Your favorite class/classes to teach at camp?

‘’Small guy pressure: Mount attacks’’ or ‘’Play with your food: Back attacks’’

 

 

Anything else you want to add to your profile?

Instagram @stevieantoniou

 

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Stevie Antoniou – BJJ Globetrotters instructor

Featured Traveller: Matt McDonald – BJJ Globetrotters

Matt McDonald - BJJ Globetrotters

Age: 36.9

Belt: Purple

Profession: My background is in software engineering, and currently I’m working on a property maintenance company and rehabbing ugly houses.

How many years in BJJ: 4.5 years, with some time off for injuries.

Other martial arts: I wrestled in high school, where I won the superlative award for Best Catwoman Costume.

Where do you live: Sarasota, Florida, United States

Where are you from: I was born in Columbia, South Carolina, but I’ve moved around a lot. Columbia, Missouri is mostly where I grew up. One day I’ll probably moving to another Columbia.

Other fun or curious information you would like to share:

  • I’ve started doing a kimura with my feet from side control. For now I’m calling it the Mattlock.
  • I have a cautionary tale about competing without understanding the side effects of your medication. I was taking antibiotics for the week leading up to my first tournament. Overall it wasn’t bad, but it did affect my stomach. Midway through my first match, I realized I was starting to have a downstairs mixup. We were in a scramble, and ended up way off the mats. I was confused at why we weren’t being reset, everyone was yelling, and I had to tap really early to an armbar so I could run to the bathroom before things went south. I’m just glad my opponent never got to knee mount.
  • I’m really into miniature wargaming, to the point that I go to several conventions. I have several armies and spend a ton of time hunched over painting my models.
  • I co-founded a startup that now employs around 3000 people and has branches in 36 states.
  • My wife is smart, beautiful, kind, and puts up with me for some reason. And she’s definitely not helping me write this.

Matt McDonald – BJJ Globetrotters Castle Camp

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
I found a post about BJJ Globetrotters on Reddit when I was a few months into BJJ. I went to the Heidelberg camp in 2019 and fell in love. I also sent a bunch of emails out to people on the Matsurfing website, and went to visit anywhere that someone answered from. I ended up training with people who didn’t speak much English and it was a really neat experience.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
I’m writing this from Asheville, North Carolina. Some of my training partners and I took a road trip up to spend the weekend in the Blue Ridge Mountains for Camp Grappalachia – which I only learned about because I met several awesome people at Maine Camp a few years back and stayed in touch. Our next trip is to Poland for Zen Camp, with a stopover in London to visit a friend who has an addiction to wristlocks.

Matt McDonald – BJJ Globetrotters

What are the things you enjoy about travelling?
The bread! The US doesn’t have good bread, and I love finding the good stuff when I travel. More generally, I’m usually looking to try all of the local foods.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
Oh man, where to start? I dressed up as a Happy Meal for a wrestling match. Attended a dinner concert for an 80s Estonian pop star. Watched an underground scooter race. Participated in the most epic dodgeball upset. Jumped into Lake Michigan in February. Went to prom at camp. Grappled on a waterfall. Wrestled with a viking in Iceland. Took a helicopter tour in the Faroe Islands. Explored a black sand beach on an ATV. So many cool experiences, and they were all made so fun by the people that we were with. Some of my closest friends are people that I’ve met through traveling and training.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
Some of the people at Globetrotters camps are able to party so late and be on the mats so early. It will always be a mystery to me.

Matt McDonald – BJJ Globetrotters Beach Camp

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
I have a budget, but I’m not a budget traveller. I like staying in fun places, and at a lot of camps I will organize sharing a large Airbnb. My best budget strategy is to play the reward points game, and my favorite tool is roame.travel which helps me find cheap award flights.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Take more photos. Many times I’ve been scrolling through my photos and been reminded of a fun event that I’d completely forgotten about. Without photos, those memories might have been forgotten.

I think it’s also important to get out of your comfort zone from time to time. Try something that you wouldn’t normally do – it can be good for you to be a little uncomfortable from time to time. It builds character or something.

 

Thank you to Matt McDonald – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Building a Jiu Jitsu Tour Bus

Hey Fellow Globetrotters!

I’m Tammi, a brown belt currently training and coaching in the UK but itching to travel again after a lucky almost half a century of travel and experiences around the world.

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The Impact of a Book

I started training at Carlson Gracie London back in 2012 when I was 36, but had to stop temporarily while I had surgery for a condition called Hip Dysplasia. While recovering I was travelling in South East Asia and read Christian’s book. I was so inspired and I realised I didn’t have to go home to get back to training, I could train anywhere with mats and other willing bodies.

So I moved to Myanmar where there were absolutely no Jiu Jitsu gyms and no mats either!

There were however, a handful of guys who also wanted to train and we had use of a hard studio floor in a local fitness gym at weekends. It was tough on that hard floor but we were all dedicated and trained there for months before I managed to ship some judo mats over.

You can read a  Jiu Jitsu Times article here about how I turned my apartment there into a gym and how Christian helped us get coaches from all over the world to visit and coach in return for hospitality.

If it hadn’t been for Christian’s community of people who loved adventure as much as Jiu Jitsu, I don’t think I would have lasted there as long as I did.

After a few years there and many excellent visiting coaches, I decided to move to Bangkok Thailand and join Morgan Perkins and his team at Bangkok Fight Lab. BFL was an established gym with a full daily class schedule and 20-30 regular students on the mats. Even a few girls!

Returning Home

I had many happy years in Bangkok. Morgan and his then partners allowed me to build a cafe inside their new gym and it was finally starting to take off when the pandemic started.

Unfortunately the last lockdown forced me to eventually close that business and move back to the UK in late 2021 to live with my Dad in the countryside. My sister and her husband live next door and she was pregnant with their first baby when I returned, so the timing was as good as it could be.

However, dealing with that first winter after 8 years abroad in the constant heat of Asia, was a massive shock to my system and I had to make sure I could somehow spend future winters in warmer countries.

I wanted to convert a vehicle into a home and travel to gyms across Europe, inspired by other BJJ Globetrotters.

I found a local job and soon had enough money to buy an old Mercedes Vario ex-school bus. I drove it back to my Dad’s and with help from a friend we stripped it and got to work dealing with the rusty chassis and replacing engine parts.

 

I knew to make my dream of travel across Europe work that I would need to earn money while travelling and travel vloggers were starting to earn a decent living from their content so I signed up to a course and spent several months learning how to make videos for YouTube.

I’m still learning and always will be but I really enjoy the creative process and I’m determined to keep improving my videos and growing my channel. I feel like a white belt again, entering a new realm, learning new skills, looking for mentors and inspiration, trying hard to innovate, progress and grow.

You can see how the bus is coming along and also enjoy some purely Jiu Jitsu content there too. At some point it’s where you’ll also find…

The Grapple Travel Show

I have an idea for a YouTube show to help promote friendly gyms and the idea of training while travelling or on holiday. I hope to start releasing episodes on my channel soon, even before the bus is finished (which could be another year or more). The pilot episode will be on the gym I currently train and teach at, VT Jiu Jitsu in Wiltshire UK.

Some of you might already know Sabine from Grappletoons and the BJJ Open Mat card game she made with Christian’s assistant Vara. I’ve known Vara for years as we both lived and trained in Bangkok and I met Sabine when she visited Bangkok Fight Lab.

I asked Sabine to make me a logo for the show recently and I’m really happy with the result. If you haven’t already made yourself an avatar at Grappletoons then get yourself over there, or make one for your favourite training partner or coach 😃

Relying solely on YouTube for income would be dumb, so I’m trying to do various other projects too, in the hopes one of them takes off, or perhaps they all just help contribute a little.

I write a free weekly newsletter on Substack all about my attempts to be a solopreneur.

This is the first of my blogs here but I’ll write more as the bus and The Grapple Travel Show progress. If you’re reading this then you probably love Jiu Jitsu and travel too, so hopefully you’ll be interested in the show.

I’m very open to any ideas other people might have for the show and I hope in time I can get other people to present their own show using the format too, so we can go global and encourage more gyms to give visitors a good experience, help them promote their gym, give travellers a good idea of what to expect from the gyms they’ll visit and show people new to the sport that they have ready made friends all over the world, just waiting for them to drop by for some rolls and share with them the best things to do and see in the local area.

I hope to connect with you on your preferred platform for now (see links below) but hopefully soon I’ll be asking for recommendations for gyms with space or a nearby spot for the bus for a few weeks and if I visit your gym I hope to connect with you IRL on your mats 😃

Thanks for reading,

Tammi

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